1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the prevention of accidental hollow-bore needle-stick injuries in health care workers using winged infusion assemblies for administering fluid medications in veins or withdrawing blood.
2. Description of Prior Art
To prevent needle-stick injuries to health care workers, needle guards which slide over syringes to extend beyond the tip of an injection needle and,then, lock are now common. Guards which slide over the trailing tubing in infusion assemblies are less well developed than those which slide and lock over syringes. However, the former are crucial in preventing transmissible blood-borne infections, because the leading needles are usually inserted into veins and, therefore, usually bring back blood in their bores on withdrawal.
The use of tethers as parts of needle guards have been described by Slaughter (U.S. Pat. No. 4,781,697 Nov. 1, 1988), Dombrowski et al (U.S. Pat. No. 4,790,828 Dec. 13, 1988), Corey (U.S. Pat. No. 4,955,866 Sep. 11, 1990), and Simon (U.S. Pat. No. 5,051,109 Sep. 24, 1991). None of these describe a tether which uses the patient as an anchor.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,061,250 Oct. 29, 1991, Shields described a tether with a tab finger-held over a vein aligned pull a slit elastomeric tube containing a puncture-resistant sheath over a needle during withdrawal. This system was complex and awkward to owing to orientation of the slit which captures the needle, the elastomeric nature of the system, and lack of provision for keeping the tether out of the way when not in use. The previous invention is not applicable to the instant invention, because the latter does not incorporate a slit elastomeric tube.
In U.S. patent application 07/956/790 filed Oct. 5, 1992, Shields described a tethered cylindrical or conical tube with a leading end designed to safely entrap the hub and leading end of a hollow-bore steel needle whose trailing end is attached to proximal tubing. The instant invention differs from the former in that a conical tube with a leading tether embodies a V-shaped opening beneath the tether; paired longitudinal slits terminating in slots designed to trap the wings of a butterfly infusion assembly within the body of said cone, such that the leading hollow-bore steel needle can be safely trapped; and a variably sized trailing aperture in the trailing end of said cone, such that the device can be releasably stabilized, either with respect to the tubing over which said cone slides or to the paraphernalia on the trailing end of said tubing.
Owing to the alarming rate of increase in HIV, HBV and HCV infections in health care workers caused by accidental hollow-bore needle sticks after withdrawal of the needles from the veins of infected patients, urgent needs now exist for safer equipment, especially paraphernalia used for giving intravenous infusions or withdrawing blood.